The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Cordyline plant, botanically known as Cordyline fruiticosa and further known by the varietal name ‘BRA01’. This new variety is also sold under the trade name CARUBA BLACK. The new variety was created from a sport of a wild green Cordyline fruiticosa (RHS 141A (1995)) collected by Michael Yappi in the Western Highlands region of New Guinea in Mt. Hagen. The sport was then provided to a plant collector, Michael Ferrero of Cairns, Queensland Australia, and imported to plant breeder Peter Brauns of Plant Source Australia who performed further trials and selections using vegetative reproduction techniques in a cultivated area. The parental cultivar is a green leaved Cordyline fruiticosa (unpatented). The new variety has purple/black foliage. The cuttings were planted out and plants with desirable ornamental characteristics were selected. The cultivar was isolated by the inventor in Australia by selecting primarily on the basis of compact growth habit, foliage color, and suitability as a garden or container grown plant.
Following selection of the plant, the cultivar was propagated vegetatively through cutting and division at Edmonton, Queensland, Australia. Continued observation of the vegetative divisions resulting from asexual reproduction taken at Edmonton, Queensland, Australia have confirmed that the distinguishing features of this new cultivar came true, remain stable and are retained through successive propagation.
The closest comparator to ‘BRA01’ known to applicant is Cordyline fruiticosa ‘Hawaiian Flag’ (unpatented) which is a clump forming plant with green foliage and some purple and yellow variegations, a mean width of 92 mm, and a mean length of 389 mm excluding the petiole. The parent wild green C. fruiticosa has green foliage and a plant size up to 1.8 meters.